Tag - Indonesia

Cycling Java’s Secret South Coast

Escaping Jakarta Cycling out of Jakarta is pure madness: the surging crush of motorbikes and buses, trucks and taxis, all racing and suddenly braking through impossibly slender streets. We dive into the mayhem before we lose heart, hoping like hell that nobody clips us..... . .

Maratua Island – Indonesia’s Paradise Found

Snorkelling along the edge of the reef, Maratua’s sheer wall of coral disappears into the blue, a swirling mass of tropical fish dazzling me at every turn. Suddenly the turtles sense my presence and peel off the wall in synchronised succession, one, two, three….I..... . .

Underwater statue s Gili Meno Indonesia

The Gili Islands: Bali’s best escape

Why we love the Gili Islands As Bali’s most popular island escape, the northern Gili Islands’ trio of tropical isles – each with a distinctly different personality – is where travellers find their perfect fit. Each island caters for a different kind..... . .

It’s said that when children die in the mountain village of Moni, their spirits soar high towards Mount Kelimutu, settling in the warmest and bluest of the volcano’s tricoloured crater lakes. Image Credit - David Bristow

Climb a volcano: Mount Kelimutu’s Tricoloured Lakes

Climbing Kelimutu It’s said that when children die in the mountain village of Moni, their spirits soar high towards Mount Kelimutu, settling in the warmest and bluest of the volcano’s tricoloured crater lakes. Known as Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo Fai, this sacred turquoise lake..... . .

Sailing Komodo Islands

How to book the best deal and Cruise Komodo

Komodo National Park It’s the single best thing you can experience in Flores, but choosing a cruise through Komodo National Park can be a bit of a head-trip. We’ve nailed down all the information we were looking for (but couldn’t find) to help you avoid the..... . .

Java’s Secret Pleasure Palace

Imagine an extravagant castle full of luxurious bathing pools and rooms built for pleasure that was so secret you could only enter via a hidden underground passage tunnelled beneath a lake. This was Indonesia’s Taman Sari about 250 years ago and it was here that..... . .

Is Borobudur the world’s best Buddhist site?

It has been rocked by earthquakes, pillaged by treasure hunters, bombed by terrorists and pummelled by volcanic eruptions, yet the single, largest Buddhist structure on earth endures. This is Borobudur: a 1200-year-old Mahayana Buddhist temple that rates as Indonesia’s..... . .

Escaping Jakarta by bicycle

We’re cycling out of Jakarta through traffic like we’ve never seen before: a surging sea of motorbikes and buses, trucks and taxis, all squeezing and racing and suddenly braking along impossibly slender streets. This is madness. We push on through it (quite..... . .